Post-Award is committed to supporting each principal investigator and business manager throughout the life cycle of a grant. After Post-Award receives the approved budget and signed contract, the account is set-up and managed according to the contract requirements, federal regulations, and University policies. If Post-Award has questions, they will first attempt resolution through a business manager. If there are additional issues, the principal investigator is contacted for guidance. Contact agspa@utk.edu if you have a question regarding the set-up, management, or closeout of a project.
Be familiar with the contract, budget, and budget justification of the award. They serve as a guide for the project. Be sure to know:
- Who is assigned specific tasks?
- When are the deadlines?
- What should be accomplished?
- Is the project on budget?
- What are the reporting requirements?
Finally, communicate approved revisions and document!
Review the approved budget justification of the award. If you are unsure, do not assume the purchase is allowable. Contact Post-Award at agspa@utk.edu for guidance. Our staff is here to assist you.
In order for travel to be an allowable expense, the staff member traveling must be on the payroll distribution list during the month the travel occurs.
Budgets should be reviewed/reconciled monthly to evaluate debits/credits applied to each award. Fiscal policy F0115 requires ledgers to be reconciled no later than 45 calendar days after the month closes. For additional information on the process for reconciling ledgers, review F0115.
The indirect cost agreement can be found on the website under Resources.
Moving expenses from one project to another is known as a cost transfer. This is allowed when the work on one project is determined to significantly relate to that of another sponsored project with the same Principal Investigator. Specific conditions must be met and documentation detailing the cost transfer must be included to fully justify the transaction. For additional information about cost transfers, review FI0220 located in the Audit & Compliance tab. A cost transfer form is attached in the Resources section of this website.
The advance account form found in the Resources section of this website should be fully completed with the required signatures. A budget must accompany the form. The first year of the proposed budget will be posted when the advance account is created by Post-Award.
Funding agencies will state in the contract what reports/documentation they require throughout the life of the project. It is important to remember that reporting milestones often must be met by principal investigators before sponsors agree to submit payments. The post-award staff also processes/submits financial reports, for example the SF425, to sponsoring agencies.
The Automated Standard Application for Payments is commonly referred to as ASAP. It is an electronic system that quickly transfers money from federal agencies to recipients in a secure manner. Payments are made from pre-authorized accounts as requests are made from organizations. ASAP is a free service for both parties.
The SF425 is a standard form used by recipients of federal funds to report cumulative expenses per award. The form is requested by sponsoring agencies to be used as a reconciliation tool for expenses incurred under each award.